Memories of Princess Grace of Monaco - Will Meghan Markle Regret Giving Up Career

Along with the announcement of the engagement of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle, there was the "rider"some Americans didn't want to hear.

That was that Markle was retiring from her career in acting. She had performed roles is "Suits" and "Fringe."

Those of us who cringed at the news bore witness to how Grace Kelly's world became smaller and smaller after she became Princess of Monaco.

As with Markle, the idea of an American becoming a princess was exciting.

That American was both an Audrey Hepburn-type classic beauty and a successful actress. Among her major films were "High Noon," "Rear Window," and "To Catch a Thief."

At the time, the royal wedding between Kelly and Prince Rainier III was the biggest special event until the royal wedding between Prince Charles and Diana Spencer. 

As with Markle, Kelly retired from her career. She and her Prince had three children.

Soon enough, alert Americans could feel her "itch" to be part of a world beyond civic duties, humanitarian causes, and motherhood.

When lead roles in "Marnie" and "The Turning Point" were offered to her, she "had to" turn them down. 

Kelly gained weight. She seemed to turn inward.

One wonders if the same boring fate will take over Markle's daily life.

No, her career had not yet been as successful as Kelly's. But it did make her a minor celebrity. Anyone who had achieved that kind of micro fame through their own achievements understands the acute pain when the channel changes.

Will the vibrant Markle wilt as she oversees worthwhile causes? Or, will she be able to carve out a good-deeds niche which matches her activist personality? 

There is the anecdote that she was distressed by a P&G commercial for a soap. It featured women as engaged in a battle with greasy pots and pans. She found that reductionistic of women's roles in society. She shared that opinion with lawyer Gloria Allred and Hillary Clinton. In a few months, that commercial disappeared.

Americans hope that Markle can put her unique stamp on being a princess. We will always regret that she is surrendering her American citizenship. Kelly held on to it, even as Princess of Monaco.

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